I Won't Give Up
by Dramione-whovian
Summary: Based on the song. They've gone through a lot, both together and alone. What will it take for them to be together? It may be a bit rushed.


**So I listened to the song and I was inspired to write this...but it's a bit OOC. I reedited it a bit.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the song or HP...**

* * *

_I won't give up on us_  
_Even if the skies get rough_  
_I'm giving you all my love_  
_I'm still looking up_

**~I Won't Give Up by Jason Mraz**

* * *

He begged her to stay. She turned to leave. A hand shot out and gripped her arm and swung her around to face him. A thunderous expression was cast across her face. Molten silver clashed against an ombre russet.

_ It was over. She felt disbelief raging within her; Voldemort was actually gone? Laughter bubbled in her throat. A lightheaded feeling filled her. Merlin, it was over! Her relief was quashed when she heard anguished sobs throughout the battlefield. _

_ Was this really a victory? So many dead, so many gone…how could this constitute as celebration? Her feet brought her to wander around aimlessly, the sadness in her eyes threatening to emerge as tears. Devastation was all there was in a hundred mile radius._

_ "Never seen the dead before, Granger?"_

_ Upon hearing the aristocratic tone of a certain blond, she whirled around to face him, "Don't you dare say a word, Malfoy. Harry, Ron, and I saved your miserable life back in the Room of Requirement, you ungrateful, heartless ferret!"_

_ His expressionless mask morphed into one of hardened fury, "You think I'm heartless?"_

_ She snorted, "Please, with the way you've been acting for the past _seven years_, it's no surprise that I think so."_

_ What she expected was yelling, hexing, and possibly the word "Mudblood" in use once or twice. Instead, to her extreme shock, he dropped his mother's wand and sighed, "There really is no chance for me to _change,_ is there?"_

_ She hesitated. Was he tricking her? Her heart reached out for him: his tiredness linking to her own. This war had changed all of them…and in a way that was neither good nor bad. Her gaze connected to his and she _truly_ looked at him. _

_ Grey. It wasn't black, brown, blue, or green. It wasn't dark nor light, perfectly capturing the meaning of the color. Perfectly capturing _him_. She saw age far beyond his years. The shadows in the silvery color casting the horrors and pain he had tasted, seen, felt. Those wavering depths seemed to be full of more than she thought he could hold. It seemed impossible that the Slytherin Prince could even feel anything excepting sadistic pleasure. How old was he really? How old was she? _

_ "I believe in chances, especially second chances" she finally answered, "but only if the person is willing to turn a new leaf."_

_ Skepticism was predominant in his voice, "Is that so?"_

_ "I'm not lying to you, Malfoy. Everybody messes up and everybody—even Voldemort if he wanted to, though I doubt it— deserves a second chance."_

_ He turned from her._

_ "Even you."_

_ Her outstretched hand lay between them, a promise, an invitation._

_ She could see the haunted orbs shift and roil with doubt, uncertainty, and fear. Then, like a light slanting from the clouds, hope shattered the darkness. He hesitantly accepted her hand. She would try to describe it later, but she fell speechless. It was a burst of unspeakable joy inside of her when he had chosen. A joy of his acceptance. _

_ As they walked back to the castle, she had hope. They would heal…together… _

"Stop running away from me, Hermione," he said softly, the hand that yanked her back was now lightly trailing down her flushed face.

She was lost in his eyes. They were always his most attractive feature: in the low light they seemed to glow with an intense light. How had they come to this?

"Please," he whispered.

Her heartbeat rocketed as he leaned in.

"No, Draco," she said, pushing him away, "we…we're not…we can't—"

"Don't do this, Hermione," he said, the softness starting to give way to pained frustration, "You always say we can't when we haven't even tried. You say people deserve chances, yet you won't give me—give us—one."

She struggled to push him away, to tell him that they were too volatile together, that it would never work out, "Because I know what we're like, Draco. We'll only hurt each other."

He was silent. Tears of frustration welled in her eyes. Why couldn't he see that she just didn't want to be hurt again?

_ "He was," she choked up, tears and grief clouding her mind, "the most kind, caring, lovable person I've ever met. A good friend, a son that surpassed every expectation, and a boyfriend that shaped my entire life. We were best friends before becoming a couple. He sacrificed a lot to help the Wizarding Community and he still made time to be with me and to commit to our relationship. A man like him doesn't deserve to die at the peak of his youth," the tears were know streaming in sorrowful rivers down her downcast face, "he deserves a life of happiness, prosperity, and a future of contentment, especially after his contribution to the end of Voldemort's reign. The Ron I know would not want to cry, but it feels like my entire soul has been ripped out. I can almost imagine his voice right now," a watery chuckle broke through the sobbing, "_Merlin, Hermione, stop with all the blubbering! It's not I've completely left you; you're in my heart as I'm in yours. _He may not be here now, but I know he's looking down at us from Heaven, waiting with open arms, a feast, and a, 'Finally!'" she heard a few weary chuckles from the Weasleys._

_She sat down, her legs feeble and her frame trembling from the intensity of her emotions. Oh Merlin, Ron, I miss you so much? Is this heartbreak? _

_-A few weeks later-_

"…_thank you, Susan," she smiled at the ex-Hufflepuff and fellow MLE officer, "I'll be going to the meeting now."_

_It was an utter bore. Her mind lazily drifted to past meetings, how Ron would— _

_Suddenly, she felt too constricted, too closed in. With as much grace as she could afford, she politely excused herself and walked swiftly out of the Ministry building._

_ "Hermione Granger's Apartment," she announced loudly before plunging into the green flames of the Floo._

_ She was immediately washed over with the homey feeling of the apartment…she had shared with Ron. The tears started building up again. Adamant in stemming the hurt, she Apparated away; her mind spun with confusion and feeling. When she got her bearings, she recognized the pathway and gazebo of the secluded garden near her home. Stumbling slightly, she leaned against a support of the worn gazebo. Pressing her forehead against the cool wood, she let the earthen smell and the solitary feeling overwhelm her._

_ "I knew you'd be here."_

_ She tensed, "What do you want, Malfoy?"_

_ "Honestly, Hermione," the young man smiled at her, "I thought we were past last names."_

_ "Just leave me alone, Draco," she mumbled._

_ As if finally feeling the heaviness of the air, he saw the root of her listlessness. She heard the crunching of leaves before it was deathly silent. He must have left. She allowed one lone tear to leak from her eyes. When had she ever cried for so long?_

_ "Potter's looking for you."_

_ With a yelp, she leapt a meter into the sky upon feeling his breath against her ear. Darn that ferret!_

_ "You skipped out on the meeting. Shacklebolt's furious."_

_ "Well, I don't care!" she exploded, "I'm just stressed. I needed a break, ok?!"_

_ He put a hand on her shoulder, "It's been about a month, Hermione. Don't you think you should…let go?"_

_ "Let go?" her voice shook, "Let go? How can I let go of the most important person of my life? How can I let go of my best friend, boyfriend, and the most changed man ever?"_

_ She failed to see the hurt glint in his eyes. Calmly, he retraced his steps, "That's not what I meant, Hermione. I mean you should accept that he's gone. You don't have to forget him, but shouldn't you be glad that Potter's still living? Shouldn't you be glad that you still have _you're_ still living? Don't waste Weasley's sacrifice by living in misery for the rest of your existence."_

_ He slid his hand down her arm and entwined his hand with hers, "Potter's been worried sick for you. So has the ex-Weaselette, Lovegood, and Blaise. _I've_ been worried sick about you."_

_ The caring and concern in his voice moved her. How had this man changed from being her worst enemy to one of her closest friends?_

_ "I-I think you're right," she finally said, her voice a whisper, "I've been so immersed in my own grief that I didn't even think about how you guys would feel. I'm so sor—"_

_ He smirked at her, "Don't apologize, Granger. You loved him, you mourned him, but now, you're going to move on."_

_ "Thanks for putting up with me," she said as they walked down the path to the Apparition point._

_ He gave her a one-armed hug, "No problem, Granger, that's what friends are for, right?"_

_Hermione could feel the spring return to her step. She truly was lucky…_

"Hermione," his honeyed voice broke through her flashback, "I would _never_ hurt you."

The earnestness in his voice, in his eyes did little to convince her, "How would you know? We've argued more times than I can count. What's to say that we won't in a relationship?"

She saw the unexplainable emotion deepen in his eyes. The tension seemed to mount tenfold. He took a step closer. She could smell the spicy sandalwood scent that was simply _him_.

"I know because," he murmured, his face only centimeters away, "I love you."

His mouth slanted over hers and he pulled her close. Hermione could feel herself drowning in a flood of sensations that seemed beyond her understanding. She had never shred more than a simple peck with Ron. With Ron, it was all straightforwardness and simplicity; a comfort she found haven in. With Draco, he was a wave of gentle passion that rose complicated feelings within her. A spine-tingling warmth crept throughout her body, filling her with a completeness that she hadn't felt since…since Ron.

When the need for oxygen drove them apart, Hermione could feel her whole body thrumming with shock and…

"I-I," she stammered, her mind still reeling from the kiss, "I don't—I mean…oh Merlin, Draco, I'm sorry!"

With the last statement, she ran for the door. Before she was out the door, he hollered, "I'll always be waiting, Hermione! I won't give up!"

Surprisingly, she knew that. She knew from that single kiss, from seeing that emotion, that he was willing to and Merlin knows that she had experienced the effects of his stubbornness more than once. But would he wait long enough?

* * *

_**A few days later...**_

Hermione had never felt this emotionally tired. And her usually-soothing chamomile tea wasn't helping.

An irrational anger suddenly filled her. _Probably a gold-digger_, she thought, _one that just wants to use my best friend_. The twinge filled her again. What was wrong with her? There was no way she was…

Jealous.

Then, like lightning, she was struck with the answer. Her eyes widened and her heart beat faster. _Impossible, _her mind argued, _this can't be true_. Her heart, however, fought against all reasonable thought and forced her to turn around and head back to the building, back to Draco.

Walking wasn't fast enough; the jog soon broke into a full-on sprint. She burst through the door like a madwoman and ran straight into the somewhat-shocked Malfoy's arms.

"I love you," she whispered into his ear, "I love you, Draco, with all my heart."

He stared at her: shock was first, followed by unadulterated joy. He picked her up and spun her around and kissed her full on the lips; like in a cheesy romantic comedy. Hermione felt herself melt into his arms, she was complete.

When they separated, breathless and smiling, he smirked, "It took you long enough."

"Wipe that arrogant smirk off your face," Hermione said, her hand clasped with his, "Who was that?"

She whacked him in the arm good-naturedly, "If you're going to be like this, our relationship's sunk."

He put an arm around her waist, "It's a part of the Malfoy charm, love."

A thrill ran down her spine at the word. They walked out without a care in the world, finally content.


End file.
